Summer is well and truly here (the temperature highs last week made that very clear!), and as promised in our previous April 2022 newsletter, this year is shaping up to be a year of exciting transformation for us. Alongside the many changes we’re making, we’re also ensuring we step back and take the time to come together to acknowledge the wonderful work we do here at Foundation for Change.

Read on for some insights into what has been happening over the last few months and our plans
for the future.

Party time!

We celebrated our 8th Birthday back in April – a heartfelt, beautiful evening IN PERSON (!) spent with friends, supporters and most importantly, those who have graduated from our courses. Sentimental memories were shared, individual transformations were celebrated and of course, we had a huge cake to mark the occasion properly. We’ve shared all the details and some pictures  from the event on our website here.

Team growth 

We were joined in May by Jayne who is our Head of Learning and Programme Development. Jayne brings over ten year’s experience working at Rape Crisis where she coordinated, developed and delivered specialist sexual violence prevention programmes. We are incredibly excited about how her experience will inform and strengthen the feminist strand of our work as well as the broader development and delivery of our courses. She has already established some exciting new partnerships, and streamlined our referral process,
massively increasing accessibility onto all our courses.

 

At the beginning of June, Amberlee joined the team as our Head of Impact and Communications. With her on board, we are currently finalising our communication strategy that will support more intentional connection with our community of stakeholders. As we continue to share our unique, person-centred approach to recovery through our courses, she is exploring how we can further demonstrate and evidence our impact, central to our role as a non-profit organisation aiming to affect systemic change. Growing as a team and strengthening our identity is an exciting prospect for us as we begin to think about how we want to represent ourselves not only within our own sector of drug and alcohol services, but the broader community of those wanting to bring a fresh approach to tackling social inequality.

See a full profile of both new members of our team on the About Us page of our website, and get in touch with Jayne and  Amberlee to say hello!

When the Board brings cake

During June we held a get together at the office so all our board members could connect with the FfC team. This was a special moment for us, as each person was able to share a little bit about what brought them to FfC in the first place - it reminded us that people and the relationships we build really are at the centre of what we do, and that we all have a personal connection to recovery and social justice. To make this afternoon even more fantastic, the trustees brough freshly made cake (it was still warm!) and homemade cookies.

Re-introducing face-to-face courses 

Our first Psychology for Change course of 2022 came to an end at the beginning of June. As it was the first face to face course we have run since lockdown began in 2020, we knew it was going to be emotional. Our facilitators Bob, Bex, Heather and Charlie were reminded of just why our courses are so important to those in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction.

The last day listening to the personal transformations each individual had made over the course of 8 weeks was a compelling and moving reflection of how powerful our approach is and the sense of freedom and liberation our graduates experience on the course.

So what’s next?

The last few months have definitely felt a bit ‘all systems go’, but it is a hugely exciting time for Foundation for Change, and we are welcoming the change! As well as a current cohort of Psychology for Change happening now (follow our Instagram for insights into what we are covering each week), we also have a Feminism
for Change course starting in September 2022 that is nearly filled. Keep up to date with
upcoming courses via our website. In keeping in line with our 1+2 year strategy, we are continuing our work on our communications and visual identity and exploring ways we can document the FfC Approach. We have also sketched out our plans for 2023 and beyond that include us designing and delivering new courses and creating bespoke, FfC-specific, qualifications to accompany them.

Stay up to date with us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and stay tuned for the next Newsletter for more updates!
 
Enjoy the rest of the summer,
The FfC Team